Success has been hard to come by for Forsyth Central’s boys basketball program recently, but Bulldog fans could count on one thing the last two seasons.

Two things, actually.

Jeremy Long and Steven Davis were always fun to watch, and if both were clicking, Central usually had a shot at the win.

That fact seems to have caught the eyes of college recruiters, as both recent Central graduates will continue their basketball careers at the college level.

Long recently committed to play at Division III Maryville College (Tenn.), while Davis has signed to play with D-III Oglethorpe University in Atlanta.

Long was a three-year starter for the Central program, making the all-Forsyth County team all three seasons.

He was also named All-Region 7-AAAAA his junior year, made the All Northside Atlanta team, was selected to play in the North Georgia high school All-Star game and led his AAU team to a fifth-place national finish last summer.

His career will cast a long shadow at Central for the foreseeable future. He leaves high school as the all-time leading scorer in Bulldog history, with 943 career points.

“We counted on Jeremy for a lot of things. He was our floor leader, he was our go-to guy when we needed points, many times we wanted the ball in his hands,” Bulldog head coach Steve Barnes said.

Long now turns his attention to helping maintain a tradition of success at Maryville, where the Scots have made the NCAA Tournament nine years in a row and have a winning percentage of .794 in this decade.

Long said his hands are full this summer with team camp and workout schedules, but he looks forward to the challenge of playing in college.

“I’ve always dreamed of playing in the NCAA and I have been blessed to have that opportunity,” he said.

Davis transferred to Central in his junior year after his family relocated from Riverside, Calif.

He made an immediate impact on the program, hitting the game-winning shot in his first region game with Central.

Since then, he has made the all-county team twice, also being named all-region and playing on the North Georgia All-Star team his senior season.

This past season, he led the Bulldogs in average points (17.26) and rebounds (5.7), and set the single-game scoring record for Central with 41 points in a game against Lakeside-DeKalb.

Davis was a four-year starter going back to his time in California, and was the leading scorer at Riverside Christian High School his freshman year, with 18.5 points a game.

He said he looks forward to the chance to play under coach Philip Ponder at Oglethorpe.

“Coach Ponder has developed a team that is like family. Their style of play is fast and they love to push the basketball up the court,” said Davis.

Barnes said Davis brought a variety of skills to the table during his time at Central, including quickness, jumping, rebounding and defending.

“[He was] somebody that could take somebody else’s player off the dribble and go and score. ... I don't think we found anybody that could guard him yet really, and he could take it to the basket better than most,” Barnes said.

Both players look back favorably on their time with Central.

“If I could go back and replay every game, I would without hesitation,” Long said.

“I had great coaching and teammates around me every year to make each year more special.”

E-mail BJ Corbitt at bjcorbitt@forsythnews.com.